Salary Study By Condrey & Associates

from the listserv:
 Mon, 14 Jan 2013

Condrey & Associates Report 

Preparing a budget and reviewing it are tough jobs.  Nevertheless, I share concerns expressed by others about the Condrey & Associates Report being the basis for salary increases for department heads.  For those who want to read the Report, it begins at page 54 of the FY14 Budget Information packet available on the Town's website under Selectboard.  

The biggest problem I have is that Condrey & Associates surveyed only 7 municipalities for data. See Table I at page 3 of the Report.  Those 7 municipalities form the "relevant labor market" for the Report and are viewed as "similar municipal organizations".  Three of those municipalities -- Hartford, Hanover and Lebanon -- are nothing like Norwich.  One Town, Charlotte, is in Chittenden County.  Another, Dorset, is located in Bennington County.   How and why these municipalities were selected is not evident in the report.  

While pay for hourly municipal workers in Hartford, Hanover and Lebanon might be relevant for Norwich hourly employees, I doubt we compete for hourly workers with the Towns of Charlotte and Dorset.  For department heads, I don't think Hartford, Hanover and Lebanon are direct correlations. The smallest of these three municipalities has more than two and one-half times the population of Norwich.  Bigger towns have bigger budgets and bigger problems.  Department heads have different responsibilities and require different skill sets. The Report, without any analysis, presents three options.  The apparent recommendation is Plan C, characterized as "approximately 94% of the relevant labor market."  Report at page 10.  How and why 94% is a good number is not stated in the Report.  It is simply a naked number.  I  would have expected much more to justify a pay raise of 18 - 31%. 

Finally, the use of the salary scale seems selective.  The budget proposes a salary of $59,704 for our for Finance, Planning and Recreation Directors.  According to the salary chart, that is a Grade 21 Job, at Step A.  See Table C  Plus  2% at page 15.   The Town Manager position is Grade 25.  According to the salary scale, the salary for Grade 25, Step A is $88,631.07.  However, based on Saturday’s Valley News article, the Town Manager says he is underpaid, at $95,000.  Plus, according to the Condrey & Associates pay scale at Step A, the Fire Chief is underpaid but two other department heads are overpaid under the proposed budget.  How and when will those pay levels be addressed?

Thanks for reading.

Chris Katucki